Hosted by Prince of Peace Lutheran Church - Loveland, OH · EN
On this Holy Trinity Sunday, Pastor Hannah explores one of the greatest mysteries of our faith. God is 3 distinct persons: The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Yet, when we talk about God, we are talking about one person.
In today's gospel lesson, Jesus shares the Holy Spirit with his disciples, telling them "if you forgive he sins of any, they are forgiven..." Pastor Jonathan explains that this is Jesus way of telling his disciples that God's forgiveness is not only unconditional, it is meant to be shared. Because God's forgiveness is unconditional, our failures are not the final word.
In this sermon Pastor Jonathan discusses how as Jesus prays that we may all be one, we are called into relationships that transform lives. On this day we celebrate the work with the Haitian Timoun Foundation, welcome new members into the congregation, and celebrate the ministry of Pastor Tom. The power of Christ's love draws us together as one through all of these celebrations.
Today's gospel is part of what is known as Jesus' farewell discourse. Here Jesus makes clear that he cannot stay on earth, but God will provide an advocate to walk with them. This advocate, who we call the Holy Spirit, takes all our cares, grief, and sorrows, and gives us love, joy, and hope.
Pastor Hannah's message this morning comes largely from the Epistle lesson. In 1 Peter, we are asked to asked to be building blocks for God's kingdom. She explains that it takes many building blocks to construct a community, and all blocks are important. It takes time, but we can be the building blocks for God's kingdom in this world.
On this Good Shepherd Sunday, Pastor Michelle explains that when Jesus describes himself as a shepherd, he means for us to follow him. She goes on to explain that there are many false shepherds, we need to be wary of them. Just like a sheep knows the voice of his shepherd, we need to know the voice of Jesus
In this sermon Pastor Jonathan reflects on the gospel reading of the Road to Emmaus. We are reminded that while we can often convince ourselves that we are alone, we later realize that hope was walking alongside us all the while. We witness rebirth in the body of Christ here and we are sent out as the embodiment of resurrection hope in the world.
This morning, Pastor Hannah talks about the hope that Jesus gave to his disciples by appearing to them after his Resurrection. The same kind of hope we see embodied in spring buds and blooms, the kind of hope that carries us past our despair. She goes on to share that this is the kind of hope that our Resurrection Project can provide to women in Haiti through HTF, by giving them the tools to get out of the ultra poverty that is so prevalent. The hope of the Resurrection comes without requirements - God meets us where we are. We can do the same for the women of Haiti.
On this Easter morning, Pastor Michelle explores how the grief Jesus' followers felt after the crucifixion was transformed at the Resurrection. Michelle goes on to tell us that this not only affects where where we go at the end of our earthly lives, but teaches us to bring courage and kindness into a world filled with hate and cruelty. Love and life triumph over all.
On this Palm Sunday, Pastor Jonathan (with his friend Rami) explains that the reason palm leaves are used to celebrate this Sunday before Easter is that the palm was a symbol of hope in Jesus' time. Palms were used as a protest against Roman rule, and a belief that the love that Jesus preached would conquer hate and tyranny.